However.. what you propose is not supported, and generally will not work, except for a single controller system, or if you are only using it with iSCSI - with HA, to use ethernet, you must have a switch.

The reason is that when the system fails over, the IP will move to the other controller.. meaning you'd need a second interface on your server with the same IP address space, and Windows/Linux is unlikely to like that. There may be ways to get it work.. but it would be flaky.

Re: FAS2554 direct attached SFP+ to Dell Server

> So if we get the NetApp or Cisco branded DAC/TwinAx cables connected, it will work right?

At an ethernet level, yes it will work. In terms of functionality, if all you are doing is NDMP, and it's a single controller, and you have a seperate IP range setup for just that link, it will very likely work, but it is not a tested or supported configuration, so may require some trial and error.

Re: FAS2554 direct attached SFP+ to Dell Server

We only provide blessing of specific switches as part of our Cisco "Flexpod" solution, which this would not be, so I can't say this switch is specifically supported, however it does meet all the requirements for connecting the NetApp system - SFP+ ports that will take a Cisco TwinAx cable. For general utility, I might look at the 8x10GBaseT + 8xSFP+ model instead, but functionality would be the same.

For the Dell side of things, the shorter (<7M) cisco twinax cables are passive - some cards will only support "active" cables and some only support "passive", while some support both - The Intel X520 cards are an example of one that does both, but there are others.

If budget is an issue, in your position, I would try the direct attach method - it should work - but it needs to be on the understanding that a switch may be needed later.